LEARNING ABOUT CHRISTMAS

Learn about Christmas in Britain by watching the Word on the Street video series co-produced by the BBC and the British Council. 

Some tasks have been set  to help students of English improve their language skills. 

CLICK HERE TO START.

THANKSGIVING

REMEMBER, REMEMBER THE 5TH OF NOVEMBER BONFIRE NIGHT

SAINT VALENTINE .... DID YOU KNOW?

Every February 14, across the United States and in other places around the world, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine.

But who is this mysterious saint, and where did these traditions come from?

Find out about the history of this centuries-old holiday, from ancient Roman rituals to the customs of Victorian England.

Halloween is coming ......

Malala and Indian activist win Nobel Prize

     A child rights campaigner and a child education activist will share the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize.                          
     The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the two winners on Friday. They are Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan and India’s Kailash Satyarthi.

    The Nobel committee said the prize was awarded for “their struggle against the suppression of children and young people, and for the right of all children to an education.”It added that the committee considers it important “for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism.”

 Malala Yousafzai becomes the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. She is only 17 years old. She had been pushing for girls’ education in Pakistan for several years when Taliban gunmen shot her in the head in 2012.

Doctors in Pakistan, and later Britain, treated Malala. She has since recovered and continues to fight for women’s rights around the world.

Kailash Satyarthi has been leading a peaceful movement to end abuse of children for financial gain.

The Nobel Committee says he also has assisted in the development of important international agreements on children’s rights.The two winners will split the $1.1 million in prize money.

Nobel officials will present the award on December 10^th in Oslo, Norway.

I’m Caty Weaver.

This report was based on information from VOA’s News Division. George Grow wrote it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 

Scotland says "NO"

Scotland rejects independence  with "NO" winning 55% of vote.



The "YES" campaign scored four big successes winning 53% in the largest city of Glasgow, 54% in West Dumbartonshire, 57% in Dundee and 51% in North Lanarkshire.

However, the "NO" campaign was victorious in 26 authorities.

Cameron and the Queen will both move to calm all tensions when they deliver statements on Friday. The written statement of the Queen will surely focus on reconciliation.

Scots head to polls for referendum

Millions of people in Scotland are heading to the polls to vote on whether the country should stay in the UK or become an independent country.

Voters will answer "YES" or "NO" to the referendum question : "Should Scotland be an independent country?"


Polling stations opened across each of Scotland´s 32 local authority areas at 07:00 and will remain open until 22:00 today.

With many voters still undecided, both sides of the independence debate are still campaigning for votes.

The result is expected in the early hours of Friday morning.

Watch this video. It is an animated explanation of some fundamental questions prior to the referendum on Scottish independence. 

Click on the flag

King Juan Carlos abdicates

 It seems Prince Charles is quite impatient to become King of England ...

 Cartoon by Paul Thomas (Daily Express)

Europe Day

Europe Day is an annual celebration of peace and unity. To celebrate this day, let´s watch this brief history of the European Union.

23rd APRIL : WORLD BOOK DAY

As you all know we celebrate World Book Day on the 23rd April.

Although 23 April is often stated as the anniversary of the deaths of both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, this is not strictly correct. Cervantes died on 22 April and was buried on 23 April according the Gregorian calendar; however, at this time England still used the Julian calendar. Whilst Shakespeare died on 23 April by the Julian calendar in use in his own country at the time, he actually died eleven days after Cervantes because of the discrepancy between the two date systems.

The apparent correspondence of the two dates was a fortunate coincidence for UNESCO , that´s why they decided to celebrate theWorld Book Day on that date.


Do you like reading?
Watch the following video where English teenagers and young adults tell you what they like about books.

  

To end this post , please take a look at this short video ... and BUY A BOOK !  They are worth the money you spend on them !!

 

Love around the clock

Do you want to learn the meanings of these 12 love idioms ?  Click HERE

 ( Infographic provided by Grammar.net )

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year begins according to the Chinese calendar which consists of both Gregorian and lunar-solar calendar systems. because the track of the moon changes from year to year, Chinese New Year can begin anytime between late January and mid-February

2014 Chinese New Year is on January 31 ( Horse Year )

Watch the video to take a look at some of the traditions  such as Lion Dancing , Firecrackers, Read Packets and more ...

2013 National Turkey

One of the more lighthearted White House events, the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation and Pardoning Ceremony, takes place each year just before the Thanksgiving holiday. During the ceremony, the President of the United States grants a presidential pardon to the turkey, fortunate enough to be selected as the National Thanksgiving Turkey.

This somewhat odd tradition has evolved through the years, with its earliest roots possibly dating back to the Lincoln administration. Although the details are not documented, President Lincoln is thought to have spared the life of a turkey at the request of his son, Tad, who wanted to keep it as a pet.

The first record of a turkey being spared is from 1961 when President Kennedy decided not to eat that year's 55-pound  turkey, saying, "We'll just keep him." The bird was returned to his farm home.

In 1989, President George H.W. Bush started the tradition of an official presidential pardon for the National Thanksgiving Turkey with the words, "This fine tom turkey has been granted a presidential pardon as of right now." Since then, the tradition has continued every year, usually on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Day.

 

In addition to the actual National Thanksgiving Turkey, a second turkey is selected to serve as the first runner up each year, just in case the winner is not able to fulfill its duties.

Both turkeys receive pardons but only one takes the title of  National Thanksgiving turkey. American peole vote on Facebook , Twitter to choose the best candidate.

This year the candidates are POPCORN and CARAMEL

You can still vote for one of them !!

Ways to Vote: On Twitter, use #TeamCaramel or #TeamPopcorn
On Instagram, use #TeamCaramel or #TeamPopcorn and regram your favorite
On Facebook, "like" and "share" your bird of choice

                                 
Click on the image below to hear them  gobble

              

The story of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day, celebrated on the fourth Thursday in the month of November, every year, is essentially a harvest festival. It is a time characterized with lot of fun , gifting, family feasting, community praying etc.

Thanksgiving is most celebrated in the countries of America and Canada. It is a time to thank not only God but also your fellow for their continuous support and care.

Parades,  fairs, eating at restaurants, shopping are an inherent part of the festive celebration. Football game is closely associated with thanksgiving celebration in America. Foot ball matches are organised every year to mark the occasion. Thanksgiving weekend is also the official beginning of the Christmas season in America.

But how did this celebration start?  Watch the video  and learn a bit more about the story of this holiday.

British novelist Tom Sharpe dies

British comic novelist Tom Sharpe, who wrote the Wilt series and Porterhouse Blue, has died  at the age of  85.
The writer died in Spain, where he had a home in the coastal town of Llafranc. 

It seems he died due to complications from diabetes
The author, enjoyed huge success with his 16 novels, despite only starting his writing career at the age of 43.

Many of his novels, including Blott on the Landscape, became popular BBC television series.

His last book The Wilt Inheritance was published in 2010.

'Tom Sharpe was one of our greatest satirists and a brilliant writer: witty, often outrageous, always acutely funny about the absurdities of life,' Susan Sandon, Sharpe's editor at Random House, said in a statement.

If you want to read about his life click  here  ( Daily Mail Online )

Click here for  the BBC

Cervantes, Shakespeare and St. George : 23rd of April

Shakespeare ,  Cervantes and Saint George all have one thing in common : April 23rd.
 
On the 23rd April we celebrate St. George´s Day . It is also agreed that April 23rd 1616 is the date when both Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare died.

Saint George is the patront Saint of several cities , regions, states ..... Actually , Saint George is the patront Saint of England.  Here in Spain  Saint George is the patron Saint of both Aragon and Catalonia, as well as of cities such as Cáceres or Alcoy.

In Catalonia, the 23rd April is one of the most important festivities, and it is traditional to give a present for the loved one : red roses for women and books for men in return. In Aragon it is a public holiday, celebrated as the 'Day of Aragon'. It is also a public holiday in Castile and Leon , where the day commemorates the defeat at the Revolt of the Comuneros.

Although 23 April is often stated as the anniversary of the deaths of both Shakespeare and Cervantes, this is not strictly correct. Cervantes died on 23 April according the Gregorian calendar; however, at this time England still used the Julian calendar. While Shakespeare died on 23 April by the Julian calendar in use in his own country at the time, in actual fact he died ten days after Cervantes, because of the discrepancy between the two date systems. The apparent correspondence of the two dates was a fortunate coincidence for UNESCO.

The anniversary of the deaths, in 1616, of Cervantes and Shakespeare, has led UNESCO to declare April 23 World Book and Copyright Day.

SHAKESPEARE AND SOME OF HIS PLAYS 

Here you have some wonderful video material produced by the BBC about some of the most important plays by William Shakespeare. 

Do you want to learn about them ?

Have a look. You won´t regret it !!

Macbeth ( plot ):  click  HERE

Romeo and Juliet ( characters ) : click  HERE 

Hamlet ( plot ) : click  HERE 



To finish with , have a look at this mindmap about the life of William Shakespeare. Hope you find it useful

( to see the image in a larger size click here )

 

Thanksgiving

The Pilgrims, who celebrated the first thanksgiving in America, were fleeing religious persecution in their native England. In 1609 a group of Pilgrims left England for the religious freedom in Holland where they lived and prospered. After a few years there, they decided to travel to the New World. On Sept. 6, 1620 the Pilgrims set sail for the New World on a ship called the Mayflower. 

 The first winter was devastating to the Pilgrims. March brought warmer weather and the health of the Pilgrims improved, but many had died during the long winter. Of the 110 Pilgrims and crew who left England, less that 50 survived the first winter.

In 1621, after a devastating first year in the New World the Pilgrim's harvest was very successful and plentiful.  

The Pilgrims had beaten the odds. They built homes in the wilderness, they raised enough crops to keep them alive during the long coming winter, and they were at peace with their Indian neighbors. Their Governor, William Bradford, proclaimed a day of thanksgiving that was to be shared by all the colonists and the neighboring Native American Indians.

In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a national day of thanksgiving.


                                     



Watch this educational video which covers how Thanksgiving became a national holiday ( if you watch it on Youtube , you can follow an interactive script as well ).

Gunpowder plot - interactive game

 

In 1605, a group of Catholic conspirators plotted to assassinate King James I of England (and VI of Scotland) by blowing up the House of Lords during the opening of parliament.

They hid kegs full of gunpowder in the cellars beneath the chamber where the king and the rest of the political elite would assemble. Enough powder was stored to completely destroy the building and kill everyone present.


One of the conspirators, Guy Fawkes, was tasked with igniting this huge bomb. It is Fawkes' effigy that is still burned on 5 November bonfires to this day.

Click HERE to test your knowledge about the Gunpowder Plot through this BBC interactive game

Bonfire Night

In Great Britain, Bonfire Night is associated with the tradition of Guy Fawkes' Night. The modern event is held annually on or near 5 November, although its  significance has generally been lost: it is now simply a night of revelry and fireworks. Celebrations are held throughout Great Britain, in parts of Northern Ireland, and in some other parts of the Commonwealth.

Watch the video and learn a little bit about this celebration